Lesson a Day
by Shitsuren69
Summary: On June 3, 1615, Sanada Yukimura should have died. Instead, he finds himself nearly 400 years into the future, surrounded by the people he used to know but does not remember anything of the past. As he slowly adapts to the life in the 21st century, Yukimura does his best to bring joy into everyone's lives in the only way he knows how: with his passions.
1. Prologue: A Lesson in Death

I don't really know where this idea came from, except that I really like the idea of past!Yukimura trying to adapt to modern day as Sasuke (and others) struggle to help him.

I've diverged from history (just as _Sengoku Basara_) did, and tweaked around everyone's (*cough*Yukimura*cough) age. Historically speaking, he died when he was 48 years old. But because of all the tweaking in the anime/games, I've changed it to around 25 (although, the movie seems to imply that he's younger than that when he takes over for Shingen and Ieyasu starts his mad dash for power..).

Despite all of the changes, please enjoy!

* * *

Summer of 1615. June 3.

Osaka.

Of all the ways he expected his end to come, the chance of his life ending like this, so meaningless and fruitless, had been at 87.5% since last night. Had someone asked him what the chances were two days before, he would have grinned and told them it was at 56% because there was no way that even the soldiers of Tokugawa's army could defeat all of his Ten Braves. Not when Sasuke was strutting around the castle with the most unusual scowl on his face. Not when Yukimura's own forces were so fired up with their passion to win.

But that was two days ago, before Yukimura's pride (and his foolish hope when he saw Date Masamune again) had pushed him to send Sasuke away.

"Danna?" Sasuke had asked, his eyes widening as his fists clenched tightly. "I disapprove. What do you mean go spy on Tokugawa Ieyasu? What about the army that's standing outside of this castle? You're being too arrogant!"

"But Sasuke," Yukimaru had said with a laugh. "Once we finish up here, I'm going to need more information on Ieyasu-dono!"

His ninja's eyes had narrowed and Yukimura could hear the scolding from a mile away. But instead of arguing, Sasuke had relented. He had sighed and with a simple, "Stay alive, Danna," he left.

And perhaps Sasuke had been right. Perhaps he had been too arrogant. But he had truly believed that he would be victorious again. That he would be able to wait for Sasuke's return with his usual silly smile and be the one to welcome his ninja back home. Perhaps Sasuke would bring back some sweets from the capital…

"You're surrounded, Sanada Yukimura!" the soldiers shouted from all sides.

Yukimura grimaced. In his mind's eyes, he remembered his ninjas fall. One after the other. Who would have thought that the Sanada Ten Braves would fall so easily when the numbers and the odds were stacked so highly against them? When they were already tired out from the battle in the morning to be able to properly fight back now? Tch. If he had known… No. Even if he had known, he would have continued with this plan. After all, wasn't this great? It made sure that at least one person made it out alive.

"I am Sanada Yukimura, no doubt an adversary quite worthy of you," he found himself saying to the enemy soldiers in front of him. His arms ached and his spears had long been broken. He was sure he could never walk again (assuming if he survived), judging from the way his leg was bent in an odd angle. There was something hurting around his rib area. Damn. He had felt defeat before. But this kind of defeat… The kind you got when you're already down in the dirt… It was a different kind of bitterness.

Hey Ieyasu, how had your passionate talks of bonds lead you down this road?

"But I am exhausted and can fight no longer." The words themselves brought a bitter smile to his face. Once long ago, when he still had his Oyakata-sama to look up to, when he had been allowed to be so young and naïve, Sanada Yukimura would never have uttered such shameful words. But his spears were broken as were his arms. He couldn't stand, let alone walk. His men were dying and he had to end this now if he wanted to save even one more life. And his ninjas…

"Go ahead," Yukimura challenged them with a grin. "Take my head as your trophy."

There was a flicker of shadow in the corner of his eyes, but he couldn't turn to look (Ah, so another of his ninjas did survive). He had already uttered his final words. This was his turn to look cool. He closed his eyes as his lips curled up into a satisfied smile. He may not have won, he may not have held up his Oyakata-sama's banner over the capital, over unified Japan, but didn't his Oyakata-sama always tell him that it wasn't about the victory? It wasn't about the battles or the fights. It was and always will be about the people.

He heard the sword rise up and heard it swing down. With his eyes closed like this, he could pretend that the sound was from a different man. That it was someone else standing before him about to deliver the final blow. That it was that man's foreign words as he spoke in ways that made no sense but inspired so much. That it was that man with his usual self-satisfied grins…

Yukimura felt the coldest of metal against his skin.

And everything went cold.

It felt as if he was bathing in ice, as if he had fallen into the waterfall again, and Sasuke had to fish him out. Hah. How silly he kept thinking of his ninja who obviously couldn't be here. So this was what death was like. So this was why they described it as icy hands of death.

"-, are you-?!"

How odd how familiar that voice sounded…

"-! Help! There's-!"

"Five more minutes, Sasuke," Yukimura whispered softly. He smiled, because he knew it wasn't Sasuke. It couldn't be. Unlike himself, Sasuke was alive, spying on Ieyasu.

A warm handed rested against Yukimura's shoulder, and the not-so young General welcomed Death.


	2. A Lesson in Proposal

EDIT: Much thanks to the Guest anon who pointed out the obvious that it's the Oda family, not Nobunaga. I am so sorry for the silly mistake.

* * *

Winter of 2013. December 5.

It took him three months, to be honest. It was an embarrassing amount of time to gather his courage, and although he could make the claim that it wasn't like he was actually in love with her, he knew that somewhere deep inside of him, that wasn't the truth either. At first, it had been an annoying order from his boss: take care of the frail younger sister of Police Commissioner Oda Nobunaga. But as they continued to meet and he continued to help take care of her…

Detective Azai Nagamasa had gotten to that point in his life when he wondered if the engagement ring in his pocket would be enough to satisfy a beautiful woman of the rich and successful Oda family. And now three months after he bought the ring, he was still debating how he was going to ask the beautiful woman to marry him.

It came in the form of a snowy day on his day off.

It was a perfect kind of day. The snow fell with soft and gentle, covering up any sound their usually lively town made. According to the town's boat-renter Chosokabe, the lake had frozen over, which meant that it would make the most beautiful place to visit to propose to Oichi.

He had the entire day mapped out in his head. He was going to take her out to the lake to view the beautiful snowfall. They were going to enjoy the view there for a bit before he began to compare the beauty of the snow to the beauty of Oichi. Just when his poetic words begin to shatter the gloom around her, he was going to get down on his knees and pull out the ring. And if she said yes, he was going to take her to the Tokugawa Bakery, buy her the warmest and most delicious cupcake and hot chocolate to warm her up.

Even if she didn't say yes, he got the feeling he would still go through with the Bakery plan anyways. It wasn't like he could bring himself to not spend everything he had on her, despite the fact that she was richer.

Then it was going to be a candle-lit dinner at his apartment (it was finally clean and was presentable to a delicate lady such as Oichi) before he safely delivered her back to the Oda family mansion.

Yes. Everything was going to be perfect.

* * *

Oichi looked cold.

That was one thing that had slipped Nagamasa's mind. That Oichi was much more sensitive to change in temperature than normal human. Despite the fact that she was bundled up in a thick winter jacket, fuzzy hat, scarf, and fuzzy boots, she was shivering as she struggled to keep up with Nagamasa's pace. He tried to walk slowly as he could, but his heart was anxious and it showed with every step he took. He kept trying to hurry up so that he could show her the beautiful scenery, propose, and get her to somewhere warm.

Damn. He should have thought this one through better!

"Na… Nagamasa-sama," Oichi whispered, fearful of breaking his concentration. "Oichi can't…"

"Ah. Sorry."

Seeing no other choice, Nagamasa helped Oichi sit on a nearby bench. They were still quite a ways away from the lake, but this would have to do. Oichi didn't look too well, and the last thing Nagamasa wanted was to send her to the hospital. So he just sat down next to her, trying to remember the poetry that he had written for her.

"Oichi," he began, clearing his throat uncomfortably. "The thing is…"

"Nagamasa-sama, over there."

"Not now, Oichi. I have to say something."

The lady nodded but she didn't seem to be able to focus on what he was saying at all. He tried to tell her how he felt. Trying to articulate the beauty of a freshly fallen snow to her pale complexion, but her eyes kept wandering away from him and towards to the ground over there.

"What?" he snapped, feeling irritated. "Just what's over there that's so-"

The words died on his throat, because the bright red color was something that one couldn't miss in the snow. There was someone over there wearing a bright red jacket, lying face flat on the ground. Nagamasa felt his training kick in. He straightened, ordered Oichi to stay on the bench, and marched forward.

He had no way of knowing whether the person was alive or not. Maybe some drunkard fell last night and hadn't moved since? Maybe the person wasn't even alive. Maybe the person was an innocent who was seriously in need of help. He had no idea which of the theories were correct and how to go about from there. Taking a deep breath, he called out, "Hey, are you alright?!"

There was a small movement from the body. Almost like a wiggle. Almost like… Nagamasa froze for a second when he realized that the red wasn't just the color of the person's jacket. The snow might have quenched the smell, but Nagamasa had been to too many crime scenes to not realize it for what it was.

Blood.

"Hey! Help! There's someone injured over here!"

He ran forward to the body, getting close enough to hear the soft whisper of "- Sasuke." Nagamasa had no idea who this Sasuke was or why this guy was lying here. But one thing was for certain. This person was alive and fading fast. He had to do something. Resting a hand against the person's shoulder, he whispered, "We're going to help you. Hang in there."

Then louder, he called out, "Oichi! Call the hospital. We need to get him immediate attention!"

* * *

"You just found him?" Doctor Kenshin demanded, grilling Nagamasa for every bit of information he could get.

The detective nodded. "Correct. And there weren't anyone else nearby at the time. No footprints. Nothing to help us arrest who did this."

"And you didn't move him?"

"No. I just touched his shoulder to reassure him that help was coming. But he did say someone's name."

"Is that so?"

Nagamasa nodded again. "I believe he said, 'Sasuke.'"

"Sasuke? As in Sarutobi Sasuke? Our intern?"

The two shared a dark look. Then Kenshin nodded. "Alright. I'm going to see to our patient. Until then, why don't you warm up your lady with a hot drink?"

Then Kenshin was gone, leaving Nagamasa with a sudden realization that he had completely forgotten about Oichi through the chaos.

* * *

He found her with a nurse, who was sipping her coffee with a smile on her face. In Oichi's hands was a Styrofoam cup of her own, filled with what smelled like Jasmine tea, Nagamasa's favorite. He dismissed the nurse with gratitude and turned to his lady with a tired smile.

"Is he alright?" she asked, surprising him with the sudden forcefulness that she was showing.

Nagamasa shrugged. "Kenshin just entered the emergency room," he explained. "We won't know until they're done."

Oichi looked down at the ground. "It is all Oichi's fault…"

Ah. Of course. There she went again, blaming the entire world on herself. If there was one thing that Nagamasa hated about the love of his life, it was that she was quick to blame herself for everything. He put a gentle hand on her shoulders. "It's not," he assured her. "In fact, it's thanks to you that he's survived this far. If you hadn't pointed him out to me, we wouldn't have gotten him help at all."

She looked at him hopefully but didn't say anything more on the topic. She blew on the hot tea carefully before handing it over to him. "To warm you," she explained. Had she been holding the tea this entire time to give to him?

Nagamasa smiled. "Thank you." See, this was why he really loved Oichi. She was always so caring and-

He took it and sipped it gently when he suddenly remembered the most important thing that he could not believe that he had forgotten until now.

Proposal.

He was supposed to propose to Oichi today.

But when he glanced over at her furrowed brows and the worried glances she was shooting the emergency room, he just didn't have it in him to pull out the ring and get down on his knees. Well, a better opportunity would surely come.

He just had to wait.


	3. A Lesson in Meeting

I cannot write oldern English to save my life. Please excuse any mistakes.

* * *

Winter of 2013. December 5.

Sasuke sat in the break lounge, munching on a cookie as he talked to his sort-of girlfriend Kasuga over the phone. The reason he said sort-of here was because Kasuga was shy. Everyone knew that they were dating. They always hung out together and had fun. But Kasuga? She always rejected the idea that they were having fun. She was bit of a party pooper like that.

"No! I'm not going to watch a movie with you. And no, we aren't going to have dinner at my place."

"Why not?" Sasuke whined. "It's your favorite movie, too!"

"I don't like any of the Mission Impossible movies! They're your favorites!"

Okay, so they still had a bit of kink to work out in their relationship. But they were so totally together.

"Oh come on, Kasuga! You'll like them, too. You just need to give it a try!"

There was a very unattractive snort from the other end of the line. Then Kasuga snapped, "And stop calling me while I'm at work!" and hung up.

Sasuke sighed. So shy. One day, though. They were totally going to go on an actual date that they both acknowledge is a date. With that thought, he finished the cookie in his hand.

"Excuse me. Are you Sarutobi Sasuke?"

The intern looked up with an easy smile. He locked his phone and pocketed it; all the while his eyes never left the man who asked the question. "That's correct," he said to the long-haired man who was giving him a funny look.

"I found a man by the lake," the long-haired man began. "He was covered in blood and serious injuries."

Okay. Just because Sasuke was wearing a doctor's jacket didn't mean that he was one. He was just an intern and could people just really treat him as such? Despite his train of thought, he continued to smile and nodded.

"Alright, did you bring the man along?" Sasuke asked.

"You don't understand," the long-haired man said, slightly irritated. "Doctor Kenshin is currently looking at him right now."

Doctor Kenshin? Kenshin never looked at a patient unless it was an emergency. This must have been bad. Good thing Sasuke had been taking a break then, or else he would have been forced to partake in the surgery.

"And as odd as it sounds, the last thing the victim said was 'Sasuke.'"

Wait, hold the phone. 'Sasuke?' Oh hell no. Was this long-haired guy some kind of a police officer? Did they think that Sasuke did this? Gods, sometimes he hated the stupidity of their police force.

"Please tell me you guys had more sense than to think that I had something to do with this. I was here the entirety of today. And I was on a date all of yesterday. I have a solid alibi and I swear to you I didn't go anywhere near that lake since that crazy wannabe pirate almost set my hair on fire. Besides, Sasuke's a pretty common name now. I'm sure he meant some other guy."

"Right…" the long-haired man said. But there was doubt thick in his voice.

Whatever. It wasn't like Sasuke actually cared about what this guy thought. With a shrug, he picked up another cookie from the bin.

* * *

Ugh. He hated being an intern sometimes.

Double shifts through graveyard shift. Sasuke stretched as he walked through the halls, barely repressing a yawn that threatened to spill out. He glanced down at the clipboard, detailing all the duties of all that he needed to check out. How boring.

He considered texting Kasuga for a second before quickly dismissing it. It was too late. She would get grumpy at him as usual. Probably complain that she had children to take care of in the morning, and she didn't need another one right now. He imagined the cute little pout that she gave whenever she became annoyed and had to contend himself with that.

And now to his next patient…

Oh hey. Doctor Kenshin got him the new patient from today's accident. Unknown name of perhaps mid-twenties. Sounded like a delight.

Sasuke walked into the room. As predicted, the patient was asleep. Sasuke glanced around the room, noting that someone had already left him some flowers from the hospital's gift shop. Huh. The long-haired guy didn't seem like the flower kind of guy, but Sasuke supposed he could always mistake people.

According to the charts, this patient should be in intense pain and shouldn't wake up to any kind of disturbance. Yay medicine. Sasuke bent over, checking to make sure that the equipment was attached to the patient, and that the vitals showing were correct. Feeling more satisfied, he yawned a little.

"-suke?"

Sasuke's head snapped up at the sound as he glanced around the room. No one else was here. Then did he just imagine that?

"Sasuke," the voice repeated.

The intern frowned and glanced down. Surely there was no way that…

Brown eyes looked up at him, filled with excitement and joy. "Sasuke!" the patient shouted, grinning widely. "What art thou doing here? I sent thou away. And… what art those robes drapeth around thee?"

Sasuke blinked. What? "Uh… I think you got the wrong guy."

The patient frowned. "Thou art not Sasuke?"

"Well, I am but-"

"Then why hesitates thou?"

"I… don't know who you are." Or why you're talking like you're from way back when. But Sasuke supposed they should focus on one question at a time.

There was a pause as the patient's brows furrowed. "What blasphemous sayeth thou?" he asked as he tried to get up. He winced and frowned, looking down at his body. "And… what is this place?"

Usually, that last question was the first thing that normal patients asked. Granted, seeing that this patient was awake instead of being completely drugged up, Sasuke figured normality didn't really count. That and the fact that the patient apparently knew him and spoke really old-fashionably. But hey. Crazier things have happened in this hospital!

… Right?

"You're at Uesugi Hospital," Sasuke explained.

"Uesugi…? You mean Kenshin-dono?"

… Dono? Who used '-dono' as a suffix in this time and age? Sasuke figured that wasn't all that important. What he wanted to know was who this patient was and why he seemed to know the people here (Oh, and why he spoke like he was from way back when).

"Yeah. Doctor Kenshin," Sasuke agreed, nodding. "He owns this place."

"Kenshin-dono's a doctor…?" the patient asked, looking amazed at the thought. "But…" His brows furrowed deeper. "But Oyakata-sama slayed him…"

"Whoa! I have no idea who this 'oyakata-sama' is, but Doctor Kenshin is most definitely alive. Who do you think healed you when we found you?" His question, unfortunately, went ignored as the patient gave him the most incredulous look.

"Asks thou honestly who Oyakata-sama is? Thou hast fought countless honorable battles with him! He may no longer be with us, but surely thine memory is not so hazy?"

Sasuke raised a brow. "Serve? No, no. I'm just an intern. If there's anyone I'm serving, it's the unfair rules of the labor that allows people to mistreat interns because we're not actual doctors or nurses."

"… I do not understand," the patient said.

Sasuke sighed. "Look… Uh… What's your name?"

"Thou shouldst be ashamed of such question," the patient insisted, looking at Sasuke stubbornly. "Of everyone, thou shouldst know. Thou art my ninja."

"Ninja…? Are you for real? Ninjas don't exist. I'm an intern in training to become a doctor."

"You do not wear that title well."

Sasuke felt his brow twitch. What. A. Bitch. "No one asked you, now did they?"

"And why haven'st thou?" the patient shot back. "I disapprove of your complete lack of cooperation."

"Look! Stop acting like you know me! I've never seen you before my life and you talking like you know me is starting to freak me out a little!"

The patient looked at Sasuke, disbelief and concern etched on his face. "Thou truly do not know?"

"No. I don't. So why don't you inform me?"

There was a pause before the patient finally said, "Sasuke. It is I. Sanada Yukimura. Your danna."

And Sasuke might not know a lot about mental patients or how to diagnose them, but he was pretty sure they had one on their hands.


End file.
